Earlier this month Barnet Council senior management issued an instruction that staff were to go out on some of the rounds with a worker down.
Our members were frustrated and angry at this instruction and their fears for health and safety were being ignored.
Barnet UNISON backed their calls for this management instruction to be stopped.
Unfortunately, so far, management have refused to rescind their instruction.
In the last two weeks there have been a number of meetings with senior officials and Barnet UNISON to seek a resolution.
To date the management instruction is being implemented. This is an instruction which UNISON believes puts our members health and safety at risk.
Barnet UNISON has carried out an informal ballot in order to test the strength of feeling of the membership.
The ballot closed yesterday.
“The message from the members is very clear. We had a 93% turnout with 97% voting for strike action. In meeting after meeting I have advised senior management that the anger on the shop floor is intensifying for strike action as each day goes by and this management instruction continues. We have a final meeting on Monday 29 January to see if this trade dispute can be resolved.” John Burgess, Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON
On Wednesday 10 January 2018, Barnet UNISON was at a routine set of meetings at the depot when we were informed by management that the Council will not cover staff absence with an agency worker. This means that crews will be instructed to go out on their waste refuse rounds with a person down.
The street cleansing service workforce (staffed by workers who for example sweep the streets) has already been but by 19% after a recent Barnet Council decision. Now some of the waste and recycling crews have been questioning if the decision to send them out understaffed is part of anticipated cutbacks. To add to our concerns for the health and wellbeing of our workforce we can confirm there have been no risk assessments produced as a result of this management instruction which in our view places an unacceptable health and safety risk to all of our members.
Our members will know from listening to the news that the RMT union has been conducting a number of strikes across the country in relation to safety. For Barnet UNISON workers safety is no less an issue. They also know that the Birmingham Bin workers took strike action over attacks to staffing levels.
John Burgess Branch Secretary Barnet UNISON: “I want to make it clear to all our members that their health and safety is paramount to Barnet UNISON and that we do not agree with this management instruction. This proposal lies at the door of austerity politics and a view that you can simply keep on cutting with no thought to the safety of the staff having to deliver a service. Our members may not be doctors or nurses or teachers but without them our streets would quickly become toxic and unsafe. I urge senior management to rescind this instruction, allow our members to continue to deliver this vital frontline service unhindered by any further threats to their safety and remind Barnet Council our members “are not the rubbish they collect.”
“Barnet Nursery Nurses won their appeal! This would not have happened without the support and dedication of John Burgess and Unison. Thank you from us all.”
Beverley (UNISON Nursery Nurse rep).
“Barnet unison remained resolute in their commitment throughout this appeal. Showing the importance of working together to ensure ever member has a voice, this was paramount to secure this momenta’s positive conclusion for Barnet Nursery Nurses.”
Elaine Thompson Unison Nursery Nurse Rep.
“Unison has provided steadfast support to the nursery nurses since as far back as 2009. John Burgess in particular advised and guided the three nursery teams that went through the federation process, resulting in a much better staffing structure than had originally been offered.
Throughout every occurrence Unison has kept their members informed and updated so much so that when Unified pay come over the horizon we all had every confidence that our best interests were at the heart of any negotiations they were involved in. The confidence and determination/ tenacity shown by the Unison team was infectious and made us all the more determined to at least have our say.
Knowing John Burgess had championed others and been successful gave us hope and spurred us on to do our homework, galvanise as workers and put our case to the powers that be. Happily we were successful and I’m sure that with Unison on your side any workers have a fighting chance. Good luck comrades!” Ruth Kevin (UNISON rep)
Today I can confirm that the proposal to sack our only two welfare rights advisors has been suspended.
I will be going in to talks with our members next week.
I want to thank all the council workers who have sent messages of support including solidarity messages from the community and of course BAFTA winner Ken Loach and Ian Hodson President National President Bakers and Allied Food Workers Union BFAWU.
The lesson must be if you don’t challenge decisions then you will never know if you could have made a difference.
I am proud of the “Barnet Two” who despite the incredible stress and pressure they are under have managed to stay positive and focussed. I can see why both of them are excellent Welfare Advisors and why they are a credit to the Council.
Updates will follow.
John Burgess
UNISON rep.
Background links here.
“I am bloody angry”– The Cruellest Cut to Welfare Rights advisors
Shockingly this proposed cut is not about saving money! One of the biggest user groups of the service are those with Mental Health problems.
Of course it’s great that famous people are joining in to break the taboo of talking about Mental ill-health but what is the point if we just then kick these people in the face by removing access to an important service!
Barnet UNISON welcomes the proposal going to the Environment Committee Thursday 11th May at 6.30pm:
“That Environment Committee approves option E as set out in section 1.15 to 1.29 for the Street Scene Delivery Unit services including; recycling and waste, street cleansing, and green spaces maintenance (Lots 1-3) to revert to a full In–House service
That Environment Committee note and agree to the timescale, to revert to a full In–House service as set out in section 1.27, and agree that the Streetscene ADM project has concluded and that an implementation project will now commence”
Please join us in Hendon Town Hall on this historic occasion of watching an in-house model being proposed to our local councillors.
As a result of consultation we have now learnt that the two welfare rights advisor workers are not being sacked in order to make CUTS, they are being sacked because vulnerable families will get a better service without them!
Before I address the issue of why it is so wrong to sack the Welfare Rights workers I want to highlight this scene in Ken Loach’s BAFTA Award winning film “I, Daniel Blake”
This scene shows the daily humiliating life experiences people in need are facing.
I’m referring to this scene, because the Barnet Council proposal is to move away from helping to sign posting. It sounds good in the highly paid consultancy circle world. BUT the grim reality this is not just a cut for two workers it is a cruel cut that will deny access to the vital information, advocacy and support for the most vulnerable families in Barnet.
Before Barnet UNISON found out that this was NOT a financial saving, we would have referred the Council back to the uncontrollable Agency/consultancy worker costs which have gone from a round £7.3 million in 2012 to 19.8 million by March 2017.
“Why will this proposal cause hard to vulnerable families?”
In the past seven years there have been many changes in the way Advice in the London Borough of Barnet has been delivered.
The following organisations have either closed down or no longer do Welfare Rights Advice.
Welfare Rights Unit (Barnet Council)
Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has closed five of their offices (a) Avenue House (b) Grahame Park (c) Finchley (d) Edgware Hospital (e) Dollis Valley hub. Currently, the New Barnet Office is only open on Mondays morning and is due to totally shut in October 2017. The only remaining CAB is the Hendon one which is also only opened three days a weeks
CAB also used to operate a home visiting service which has also ceased.
Barnet Law Service (Dealt with Welfare Rights Appeals)
Mary Ward Legal Services (Dealt with Welfare Rights Appeals)
East Barnet Advice Services
Disability Action in the Borough of Barnet
Mencap (substantially reduced service since 2013) This service refer to the two Welfare Rights workers for Appeals and complex cases
Jewish Deaf Association Barnet (substantially reduce services now drop in sessions only on Tuesdays morning for people with hearing impairment)
Mind Barnet
Due to the Legal Aid cutsno Solicitors in Barnet do Welfare Rights Appeals
The two Welfare Rights workers are the only service that still provides comprehensive/ impartial benefits Advice up to Appeals level in Barnet. Both statutory and non-statutory organisations refer to the two workers.
In consultation it has been put to Barnet UNISON that the service could be picked up by other organisations. What is clear is that the report does not appear to know what is being provided out there in our community.
Below are some of the organisation mentioned who could pick up the work left as a result of sacking the two welfare rights workers.
Welfare Rights Task Force – Benefit Advisors only support clients affected by the benefit CAP and assist them with income and expenditure in order for them to apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment
Employment Advisors do not specialise on welfare benefits, their remit is employment
Shelter specialise in Housing and debts. They do not provide Welfare Rights Advice
DWP is unable to help the majority of our clients as there may be a conflict of interest. We support client in taking cases to the Tribunal against DWP. There would be a conflict of interest, should the DWP provide welfare benefits advice. Welfare Benefit Advice exists to ensure that clients are made aware of their legal rights and represented in the event of disputes and maladministration of benefits.
Next actions:
Barnet UNISON on Tuesday 9 May at the Family Services JNCC declared a ‘failure to agree’ in response to the proposed sacking of the two welfare rights workers.
The matter has now been escalated to a meeting chaired by the Chief Executive.
If the proposal to sack the workers is not withdrawn the matter will be raised at General Functions Committee on 28 June where we will address the Leader of the Council.
https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2017/05/04/simply-unbelievable-update-welfare-rights/
These are the words Ken Loach uses to describe the proposed cuts to our last 2 Welfare Rights Advisors.